A’s opt for son of exS.F. pitcher with Day 1 choice
When Tyler Soderstrom didn’t go in the top 15 picks in Wednesday’s draft, the A’s realized they might have a shot at the best high school catcher in their backyard and the team snatched him up with the 26th pick.
“He’s the best amateur bat I’ve seen in my 15year career,” said Kevin Mello, Oakland’s scout for Northern California. “He’s got a chance to be very, very good. He’s a really special player.”
Soderstrom has a verbal commitment to UCLA, but Oakland expects to sign him to a pro contract. Soderstrom is the first high school catcher the team has selected in the first round since Jerry Johnson in 1974 and the
first firstround catcher they’ve taken overall since South Carolina’s Landon Powell in 2004.
Tyler Soderstrom’s father, Steve Soderstrom, also was a firstround pick, going sixth to the Giants out of Fresno State in 1993. The A’s previously have taken one son of a firstrounder in the first round, selecting outfielder Nick Swisher, son of Steve Swisher, in 2002.
Soderstrom said that he didn’t have a particular baseball allegiance growing up but might have leaned toward the Giants because of his dad. “Now that the A’s have selected me, it made it pretty easy to jump ship,” he said.
Teams were hearing that Soderstrom, 18, wasn’t particularly interested in signing unless he was taken by the Giants or the A’s, so when the Giants passed on him, the A’s knew they might have a shot.
“I didn’t see him still being there, honestly,” Mello said. “That’s quite a get at 26.”
“We had what we felt was a very good day today,” A’s scouting director Eric Kubota said. “We’re super excited things worked out and he got to us. We’re completely thrilled . ... If you’d asked me coming into it, I would have been very surprised but things aligned for us.”
Soderstom, California’s Gatorade Player of the Year, was batting .357 with one homer in five games before his senior season was shut down by the coronavirus pandemic. As a junior, he hit .450 with four homers and a 1.340 OPS, and he also batted .364 with 10 RBIs in nine games for Team USA’s 18U squad last year.
During Wednesday’s MLB Network draft show, former Colorado general manager Dan O’Dowd compared Soderstrom to former Phillies AllStar Darren Daulton, but some draft experts suggested that Soderstrom might be moved out of the catcher spot in pro ball because his bat is so advanced. Soderstrom said he hasn’t heard many comparisons but added that he modeled his swing on Cody Bellinger and Christian Yelich.
“My bat is obviously my biggest asset,” he said. “That’s what’s going to carry me far in this game.”
Mello said he believes Soderstrom, who is 6foot2 and 190 pounds, can play catcher at the bigleague level. “He’s got all the skills to be a good catcher,” Mello said. “He’s athletic, he’s got a plus arm, he moves well, he receives well, he calls a good game. He’s intelligent behind the plate, and he’s a big kid.”
Kubota concurred, saying the A’s see Soderstrom as a catcher. “I think every scout for the Oakland A’s thinks he’s a catcher,” Kubota said. “He has a strong desire to catch, and that’s more than half the battle when you’re talking about developing a catcher. He’s athletic, he has good hands and he has an advanced knowledge of the position for his age.”
According to Mello, the Soderstroms have a baseball field built on their almond ranch. “It’s beautiful, and Tyler hits there all the time,” Mello said. “He’s a great kid: super smart, jolly, has a lot of fun, but extremely competitive and a hard worker.”
Kubota said A’s minorleague starter Daulton Jefferies works out with Soderstrom at the almondranch field and has raved about him behind the plate.
“We think all the ingredients are there to be a very good catcher,” Kubota said, adding, “We think he’s one of the most advanced high school bats — hit and power.”